Moved by Music: The SongSight Better Together Alumni Concert
Picking up my acoustic Fender guitar and singing my heart out has become a big passion of mine over the past dozen years. However, getting to perform on stage with highly experienced artists takes this passion to a whole new level.
This past October, I was lucky enough to participate in the inaugural SongSight Better Together Alumni Concert. This event – and a few others leading up to it –are the brainchild of Scott MacIntyre, a 2009 American Idol finalist who happens to be blind.
Let’s briefly rewind to November of 2022. That’s when I was fortunate to be selected to attend the inaugural SongSight Music Mentoring Retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona. During this unique gathering, I had the chance to join six other visually impaired artists for a powerful weekend with Scott and some of his top connections from the music industry. We performed our favorite songs for each other, learned about lyric writing, discussed accessibility in making and recording music, and recorded an original group song called “Let the Light in.” I remember flying home and feeling so empowered after that weekend. Scott then held a second retreat this past April for a new crop of attendees, where another single was born, “Better Together.”
Scott had floated the idea of putting on a live concert, and the attendees of each retreat seemed very interested in such an opportunity. So, he and his team got to work and cooked up two performances for Saturday, October 25 at Steinway Hall, a venue that’s part of the Steinway piano store in Scottsdale.
Five of us from both of the previous retreats came together for this exciting experience. We spent plenty of time rehearsing at our hotel and at the venue, and of course fueling our bodies with several delicious meals. Then the big day finally arrived. Scott and his team created a set list featuring a nice mix of music that would incorporate the five of us and even his wife, Christina, their two kids, and some other talented instrumentalists.
Joe Giacinto, a tremendous clarinet player, led off the show with a dazzling rendition of the “Star-Spangled Banner.” He later played a peppy version of “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.” Vocalist Z’Leah Liburd sang “You’re Not Alone,” an original piece conceived at this year’s retreat. Mariana Florez collaborated with Scott and Christina to sing “Santiana,” a sea shanty from the Mexican-American War era of the 1850s. Lizzie Dunn played “A Century of Love,” a beautiful piano composition she wrote for her grandfather’s 100th birthday. Scott and his family also performed a few other selections, including “This Land is Your Land” and a medley promoting their Dr. Seuss-inspired “Seussical the Musical.”
I chose to play and sing “I Won’t Back Down” from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for multiple reasons. First off, it’s just a great song to sing and have fun with. I also thought the message of not backing down in spite of adversity was quite relevant to this type of concert. Plus, my dad, a longtime trumpet player, is a big Petty fan and even went to school with some of the Heartbreakers in Gainesville, Florida. It was so cool that we got to perform on stage together for the first time. What an honor it was to be accompanied by Scott on piano and vocals and Ray on percussion.
We had four group songs as part of the shows, including “Let the Light in,” an Amazing Grace/You Raise Me Up” mashup, “Better Together,” and “Lean on Me.” I love sharing the stage with everyone for these songs, and I felt like we complemented each other quite well in terms of our vocal ranges and abilities. (Having my guide dog, Goldie, on stage for a few of the songs was neat too!)
I also got to experience working with a makeup artist for these performances for the first time. I was a bit nervous about having to wear makeup, but thankfully it was just a tiny bit of powder on my forehead, nose, and cheeks. Sharon Rodriguez, a longtime friend of Scott’s who is an expert at this kind of stuff, immediately put me at ease when I met her.
For me, collaborating with other artists opens my mind to new ideas and helps me improve in so many ways as a musician. It’s also just plain cool to share the stage with others in order to put on a show that we can all contribute to and be proud of when the crowd applauds. Not only was it empowering to collaborate with these artists, but the fact we could all relate on our visual impairments made the experience even more meaningful. I think some of the lyrics we all sang really summed up how we all felt afterward: “Every shadow… every unknown…Fades away when our voices collide… We’re better together.”
(Learn more about how you can support and get involved in the SongSight Music Mentoring Retreat for blind and visually impaired artists.)
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